Isotopic and chemical investigations on Angra dos Reis

We report on extensive isotopic studies of Pb, Sr and Xe and on chemical abundance measurements of K, Rb, Sr, Ba, Nd, Sm, U and Th for total meteorite and mineral separates of the Angra dos Reis achondrite. U-Pb, Th-Pb and Pb-Pb ages are concordant at 4.54 AE for the total meteorite and for high-purity whitlockite in Angra dos Reis. This establishes Angra dos Reis as an early planetary differentiate which has not been disturbed for these systems since 4.54 AE ago. Measured⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr in pyroxene and whitlockite for Angra dos Reis (ADOR) are distinctly below BABI by two parts in 10⁴ and only one part in 10⁴ above the lowest⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (ALL) measured in an Allende inclusion. The difference in ADOR-ALL corresponds to an interval of condensation in the solar nebula of ～3 m.y. If²⁶Al was the heat source for the magmatism on the parent planets of Angra dos Reis and the basaltic achondrites (BABI) then the relatively large difference in⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, BABI - ALL, must be the result of planetary evolution rather than condensation over ～10 m.y. Xe isotopic measurements confirm the presence of large amounts of²⁴⁴Pu-produced fission Xe and show that²⁴⁴Pu was enriched in the whitlockite relative to the pyroxene by a factor of ～18. We present chemical element enrichment factors between the whitlockite and the fassaitic pyroxene in Angra dos Reis. The enrichment factors demonstrate close analogy between the rare earth elements and their actinide analogs. The enrichment factor for Pu is intermediate to the enrichment factors of Nd and Sm.     

Angra dos Reis: Plutonium distribution and cooling history

The preatmospheric mass of Angra dos Reis is estimated to be about 80 kg, based on cosmic ray track densities of 1?3 × 10⁶ cm^?2 in feldspars, olivines, and pyroxenes. The²⁴⁴Pu-fission track densities in pyroxenes and adjacent olivine-feldspar track detectors, as well as in whitlockites and adjacent pyroxene-olivine detectors are about 20 and 280 × 10⁶ cm^?2 respectively. These values correspond exactly to the²⁴⁴Pu-fission xenon contents in the two minerals. This suggests an almost instantaneous cooling (>70 K per m.y.) of the Angra dos Reis material 4.55 b.y. ago. This fast cooling is the reason for a quantitative⁴He retention since that time. If the⁴He excess found in Angra dos Reis is a real effect, the source of this excess remains unknown.     

Genesis of the Angra dos Reis and other achondritic meteorites

Major, minor and trace element abundances were determined in seven Angra dos Reis samples including whole rocks, fassaite (clinopyroxene), olivine and whitlockite separates via sequential instrumental neutron activation analysis. The chondritic normalized rare earth element (REE) abundance pattern for the Angra dos Reis clinopyroxene separates shows a concave downward shape with a small negative Eu anomaly. The strong fractionation between the light and the heavy REE in olivine separates could be attributed to the presence of islands of kirschsteinite in the olivines. The large-ion lithophile trace elements were highly enriched in the whitlockite separate as expected (e.g. La ≈ 370 ppm). The lower Hf and Sc abundances in whitlockite compared to that in the equilibrium “magma” could be the result of favorable partitioning of Hf and Sc in baddeleyite, which may have crystallized prior to or with whitlockite in the interstitial liquid. Comparison of whole rock with mineral separate data shows the presence of ～3% olivine, ～2.6% spinel and small amounts of metallic Ni-Fe and troilite in the whole rock.The trace element abundances in the derivative magma from which the Angra dos Reis clinopyroxene crystallized were estimated from the clinopyroxene data and the clinopyroxene mineral-liquid partition coefficients. From the derivative magma, the trace element abundances in the possible parent magmas were calculated by assuming that these parent magmas have undergone different degrees of clinopyroxene fractional crystallization to yield the Angra dos Reis derivative magma. Using the trace element abundances in these possible parent magmas, a two-stage crystal-liquid fractionation model with source material containing olivine, orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene is presented for the genesis of Angra dos Reis. Possible combinations of the degree of equilibrium non-modal partial melting, the source mineral composition and the initial element abundances required to generate possible Angra dos Reis parent magmas are calculated by the multilinear regression analysis method. Favorable solutions for this two-stage crystal-liquid fractionation model could be that Angra dos Reis crystallized at ～70% fractional crystallization of clinopyroxene from magmas generated by reasonable degrees of equilibrium partial melting (～7–10%) of deep-seated primitive source materials (olivine ～54–30%, orthopyroxene ～33–53%, and clinopyroxene ～13–17%) with trace element (Ba, Sr, REE and Sc) abundances ～3.5–4.7 × chondrites. These calculated REE abundances in the Angra dos Reis parent body are very similar to those suggested for the primordial moon (～3–5 × chondrites).Possible genetic relationships between Angra dos Reis and other achondrites, especially cumulate eucrites and nakhlites, are studied. Apparently, the unique Angra dos Reis could not be related to those achondrites by crystal-liquid fractionation of the same parent body.     

Sm-Nd isotopic evolution of chondrites and achondrites,II

The¹⁴⁷Sm¹⁴³Nd and¹⁴⁶Sm¹⁴²Nd isotope systematics have been investigated in five chondrites and the achondrites Moama and Angra dos Reis (ADOR). The new chondrite data and those we have reported before are all consistent with our previously reported reference values for CHUR (“chondritic uniform reservoir”) of (¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd)_CHUR⁰ = 0.511847 and (¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd)_CHUR⁰ = 0.1967. Most of the bulk chondrites analyzed have ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd and ¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd within 0.5 ε-units and 0.15% of the CHUR values, respectively. This strongly suggests that the CHUR evolution is now known to within these error limits throughout the history of the solar system. The St. Severin chondrite yields an SmNd internal isochron age of T = 4.55 ± 0.33AE and an initial ε_Nd = 0.11 ? 0.26. Much larger variations in Sm/Nd ratios were measured in mineral separates of the Moama and ADOR achondrites. Thus, very precise ages of 4.46 ± 0.03AE and4.564 ± 0.037AE were obtained for these meteorites, respectively. The initial ε_Nd values obtained for Moama and ADOR are 0.03 ? 0.25and0.14 ? 0.20, respectively. The values obtained on these meteorites are fully consistent with the CHUR evolution curve. Initial ε_Nd data on terrestrial igneous and meta-igneous rocks demonstrates that positive initial ε_Nd values occur throughout the past 4 AE. This confirms our earlier report that a light rare earth element-depleted layer has existed throughout most of the Earth history and is the source of present-day mid-ocean ridge basalts. The inferred shape of the ε_Nd vs. age curve for the depleted mantle suggests profound changes in tectonic regimes with time; in particular, it suggests a much higher rate of recycling of continental materials into the mantle during the Archean as compared to later time periods.¹⁴⁶Sm¹⁴²Nd systematics of ADOR and Moama are supportive of the hypothesis that¹⁴⁶Sm was present in the early solar system and suggests a ¹⁴⁶Sm/¹⁴⁴Sm ratio of about 0.01 for the solar system ～ 4.56 AE ago. This inferred high¹⁴⁶Sm abundance cannot be explained as a late injection from a supernova and must be due to galactic nucleo-synthesis.     

Crystal-field spectra of fassaite from the Angra dos Reis meteorite

Fassaitic pyroxene from the Angra dos Reis meteorite has striking spectral properties. The⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectra show no Fe^3&+;, and thus the absorption is thought to originate from a complex charge-transfer process. Intense absorption at 480 nm dominates the spectrum of the meteorite and may be important in the interpretation of telescope spectra of objects in space.     

Fission xenon from extinct Pu in 14301

Xenon extracted in step-wise heating of lunar breccia 14 301 contains a fission-like component in excess of that attributable to uranium decay during the age of the solar system. There seems to be no adequate source for this component other than ²⁴⁴Pu. Verification that this component is in fact due to the spontaneous fission of extinct ²⁴⁴Pu comes from the derived spectrum which is similar to that observed from artificially produced ²⁴⁴Pu. It thus appears that ²⁴⁴Pu was extant at the time lunar crustal material cooled sufficiently to arrest the thermal diffusion of xenon. Subsequent history has apparently maintained the isotopic integrity of plutonium fission xenon.     

Studies of Brazilian meteorites: III. Origin and history of the Angra dos Reis achondrite

The Angra dos Reis meteorite fell in 1869 and is a unique achondrite. It is an ultramafic igneous rock, pyroxenite, with 93% fassaite pyroxene which has 15.7% Ca-Tschermak's molecule, plus calcic olivine (Fo_53.1; 1.3% CaO), green hercynitic spinel, whitlockite (merrillite), metallic Ni-Fe, troilite, as well as magnesian kirschsteinite (Ks_62.3Mo_37.7), within olivine grains, and celsian (Cs_90.2An_7.7Ab_1.7Or_0.4) which are phases reported in a meteorite for the first time, and plagioclase (An_86.0), baddeleyite, titanian magnetite (TiO₂, 21.9%), and terrestrial hydrous iron oxide which are phases reported for the first time in this meteorite. Petrofabric analysis shows that fassaite has a preferred orientation and lineation which is interpreted as being due to cumulus processes, possibly the effect of post-depositional magmatic current flow or laminar flow of a crystalline mush. The mineral chemistry indicates crystallization from a highly silica-undersaturated melt at low pressure. Since the meteorite formed as a cumulate, pyroxene crystals may have gravitationally settled from a melt which crystallized melilite first. Plagioclase would be unstable in such a highly undersaturated melt, and feldspathoids would be rare or absent due to the very low alkali contents of the melt. The presence of rare grains of plagioclase and celsian may be the result of late-stage crystallization of residual liquids in local segregations. Thus, the Eu anomaly in Angra dos Reis may be the result of pyroxene separation from a melt which crystallized melilite earlier, rather than plagioclase as previously suggested.     

SmNd isotopic systematics of Enderby Land granulites and evidence for the redistribution of Sm and Nd during metamorphism

Measurements of¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd and¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd are reported for whole rocks and mineral separates from granulites of the Napier Complex at Fyfe Hills. Charnockites, leuconorites and gabbros yield a whole rock SmNd isochron age of3060 ± 160m.y. and an initial¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratio of0.50776 ± 10 (?_Nd(3060m.y.) = ?2.0 ± 1.8). The negative ?_Nd value and the presence of geologically induced dispersion in the data suggest that the isochron age does not represent the time of primary crystallization of the complex but instead indicates a time of later redistribution of Sm and Nd and partial re-equilibration of¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios. This probably occurred during the upper granulite facies metamorphism which has also been dated at～ 3100m.y. by RbSr and UPb zircon studies [1]. Coexisting clinopyroxene, apatite and total rock fractions in two adjacent samples define an approximately linear array corresponding to an age of 2300 ± 300 m.y. This array indicates that redistribution of Sm and Nd and re-equilibration of¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios occurred on an intermineral scale during the upper amphibolite to lower granulite facies metamorphism at～ 2450m.y.Due to the resetting of the SmNd system on both whole rock and mineral scales, the primary crystallization age of the igneous protolith is not well constrained by the present data, although it is clearly3100m.y. If it is assumed that the complex was derived initially from a depleted mantle reservoir(?_Nd(T) ? 2), evolution of the negative ?_Nd value of ?2.0 with the observed Sm/Nd ratios requires a prehistory of～ 380m.y. This implies a primary age of～ 3480m.y. However, substantially older primary ages can be inferred if the source reservoirs had?_Nd(T) > 2 and/or substantial reductions in the Sm/Nd ratio occurred in whole rocks during the granulite facies metamorphism at 3100 m.y. Such an inferred reduction in the Sm/Nd ratio may have been the result of preferential loss of Sm relative to Nd, or introduction of a low Sm/Nd fluid with?_Nd ≥ 0 during granulite facies metamorphism.     

Phosphate in Angra dos Reis: Structure and composition of the Ca3(PO4)2 minerals

Extraterrestrial calcium phosphates (“whitlockites”) have the anhydrous β-Ca₃(PO₄)₂ structure, which is different from that of hydrous terrestrial whitlockite. This has been confirmed by X-ray refinement of the structure of a phosphate from the achondrite Angra dos Reis. In the β-Ca₃(PO₄)₂ structure, there is one crystallographic site, Ca(IIA), which is half-occupied by calcium, and which seems to have an energetically unfavorable configuration; natural phosphates with this configuration (including Angra dos Reis) have composition Ca₁₉(Mg,Fe)₂(PO₄)₁₄. Stability of the structure is probably increased by substitution of Na for Ca in Ca(IIA) giving composition Ca₁₈ (Mg,Fe)₂Na₂(PO₄)₁₄, which occurs in chondrites; by vacancy of Ca(IIA), with rare earths and yttrium substituting for calcium in other sites for charge balance, giving composition Ca₁₆(Y,RE)₂(Mg,Fe)₂(PO₄)₁₄, found in lunar rocks; or by replacing Ca with hydrogen, giving composition Ca₁₈(Mg,Fe)₂H₂(PO₄)₁₄, which is terrestrial whitlockite. Lack of the favorable substitutions of Na, (Y, RE) or H in Angra dos Reis phosphate implies that these elements were relatively scarce in its environment of formation.     

The surface composition of lunar soil grains: A comparison of the results of Auger and X-ray photoelectron (ESCA) spectroscopy

Sm-Nd data for ten greenstone belt volcanics from Rhodesia define an age of2.64 ± 0.14AE, which is in agreement with other geochronological data and with observed field relationships. This age and the initial¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratio of0.50919 ± 0.00018 yield a time-integrated Sm/Nd ratio of0.302 ± 0.009 in the mantle source region, similar to that in chondrites. Sm/Nd ratios of some lavas are0.31 and imply that a small fraction of their source was removed prior to or as part of the main melting event.The utility of the Sm-Nd system for dating altered Archaean volcanic rocks is amply demonstrated by these data.     

Evidence for244Pu fission tracks in hibonites from Murchison carbonaceous chondrite

We have developed a technique for revealing nuclear tracks in the mineral hibonite (CaAl₁₂O₁₉), found in the refractory inclusions from carbonaceous chondrites. The tracks in hibonitesfrom Murchison carbonaous chondrite are dominated by fission tracks from²⁴⁴Pu (constituting more than 90% of the total). The measured uranium contents in these crystals range from 1.2 to 62 ppb. We deduce that the average value for the²⁴⁴Pu/²³⁸U ratio in most of the Murchison hibonites at the time of track retention is0.022 ± 0.011.     

Fission tracks in a white inclusion of the Allende chondrite — Evidence for244Pu

Fossil fission tracks have been found in a coarse-grained white inclusion of the Allende chondrite. Tracks are present in excess of those produced by²³⁸U spontaneous fission and cosmic rays. The ratio of excess tracks to²³⁸U tracks is ～20, intermediate to ratios previously observed in meteorites but much lower than might be expected in light of the high initial²⁴⁴Pu/U ratio measured in these inclusions from Xe isotope ratios.     

Sm-Nd isotopic evolution of chondrites

The¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd and¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios have been measured in five chondrites and the Juvinas achondrite. The range in¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd for the analyzed meteorite samples is 5.3 ε-units (0.511673–0.511944) normalized to¹⁵⁰Nd/¹⁴²Nd= 0.2096. This is correlated with the variation of 4.2% in¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd (0.1920–0.2000). Much of this spread is due to small-scale heterogeneities in the chondrites and does not appear to reflect the large-scale volumetric averages. It is shown that none of the samples deviate more than 0.5 ε-units from a 4.6-AE reference isochron and define an initial¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratio at 4.6 AE of0.505828 ± 9. Insofar as there is a range of values of¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd there is no unique way of picking solar or average chondritic values. From these data we have selected a new set of self-consistent present-day reference values for CHUR (“chondritic uniform reservoir”) of (¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd)_CHUR⁰ = 0.511836and(¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd)_CHUR⁰ = 0.1967. The new¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd value is 1.6% higher than the previous value assigned to CHUR using the Juvinas data of Lugmair. This will cause a small but significant change in the CHUR evolution curve. Some terrestrial samples of Archean age show clear deviations from the new CHUR curve. If the CHUR curve is representative of undifferentiated mantle then it demonstrates that depleted sources were also tapped early in the Archean. Such a depleted layer may represent the early evolution of the source of present-day mid-ocean ridge basalts. There exists a variety of discrepancies with most earlier meteorite data which includes determination of all Nd isotopes and Sm/Nd ratios. These discrepancies require clarification in order to permit reliable interlaboratory comparisons. The new CHUR curve implies substantial changes in model ages for lunar rocks and thus also in the interpretation of early lunar chronology.     

Measured oxygen fugacities of the Angra dos Reis achondrite as a function of temperature

Measurements of the oxygen fugacity (?O₂) as a function of temperature (T) were made on an interior bulk sample of the cumulate achondrite, Angra dos Reis. Data clustered between the?O₂-T relationship of the iron-wüstite assemblage and 1.2 log atm units above iron-wüstite. Interpretation of the data indicates that, throughout most of the cooling history of the meteorite, ?O₂ values were defined by equilibria involving iron-bearing species at values close to the ?O₂ of the assemblage iron-wüstite. Measured ?O₂ data are compatible with crystallization and cooling at pressures greater than 50 bars.     

Crystal structure and compositional variation of Angra dos Reis fassaite

The crystal structure of fassaite from the Angra dos Reis meteorite has been determined by least-squares refinement of three-dimensional X-ray data to anR value of 3.3%. The pyroxene is monoclinic, space groupC2/c, with unit-cell dimensionsa = 9.738(1),b = 8.874(2),c = 5.2827(5)Å, β = 105.89(1)°, andV = 439.1(1)ų. Average bond lengths are (Si,Al)-O = 1.651, M1-O = 2.061, and M2-O = 2.489Å. The distribution of iron and magnesium between M1 and M2 suggests a temperature of equilibration greater than 1000°C.Electron microprobe analysis of several fassaite grains reveals small but statistically significant variations of (Mg + Si) versus (Al - Ti). The range of fassaite composition may be represented byEn₃Hd₂₂TiCpx₆(Di_53±2CaTs_16?2) whereEn=Mg₂Si₂O₆,Hd=CaFeSi₂O₆,TiCpx=CaTiAl₂O₆,Di=CaMgSi₂O₆,CaTs=CaAl₂SiO₆. Most fassaite analyses calculated on the basis of four cations yielded greater than six anions, suggesting that part of the titanium or chromium might be reduced to Ti³⁺ or Cr²⁺.     

Formation chronology for C2 meteorites

The times at which phyllosilicate matrix and euhedral olivines became associated have been determined for five C2 meteorites. The ages, calculated from fission track densities on crystal surfaces, are based on an initial²⁴⁴Pu/²³⁸U ratio in the matrix material of 0.0154 at 4.6 b.y., and range from 4.22 b.y. for Nogoya to 4.42 b.y. for Murray. Unless the initial²⁴⁴Pu/²³⁸U ratio was less than 0.004, the meteorites cannot have existed in their present form for 4.6 × 10⁹ yr. The measured ages place limits on the time when pre-compaction effects such as micrometeorite craters and solar flare tracks were produced, and they may approximately date the formation of the olivine crystals themselves.     

Rb–Sr and Sm–Nd isotopic studies of mafic igneous rocks from the Ryoke plutono-metamorphic belt in the Setouchi area, Southwest Japan: implications for the genesis and thermal history

Abstract Rb–Sr and Sm–Nd isochron ages were determined for whole rocks and mineral separates of hornblende‐gabbros and related metadiabases and quartz‐diorite from Shodoshima, Awashima and Kajishima islands in the Ryoke plutono‐metamorphic belt of the Setouchi area, Southwest Japan. The Rb–Sr and Sm–Nd whole‐rock‐mineral isochron ages for six samples range from 75 to 110 Ma and 200–220 Ma, respectively. The former ages are comparable with the Rb–Sr whole‐rock isochron ages reported from neighboring Ryoke granitic rocks and are thus due to thermal metamorphism caused by the granitic intrusions. On the contrary, the older ages suggest the time of formation of the gabbroic and related rocks. The initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr and ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios of the gabbroic rocks (0.7070–0.7078 and 0.51217–0.51231 at 210 Ma, respectively) are comparable with those of neighboring late Cretaceous granites and lower crustal granulite xenoliths from Cenozoic andesites in this region. Because the gabbroic rocks are considered to be fragments of the lower crustal materials interlayered in the granulitic lower crust, their isotopic signature has been inherited from an enriched mantle source or, less likely, acquired through interaction with the lower crustal materials. The Sr and Nd isotopic and petrologic evidence leads to a plausible conclusion that the gabbroic rocks have formed as cumulates from hydrous mafic magmas of light rare earth element‐rich (Sm/Nd < 0.233) and enriched isotopic (?_Sr > 0 and ?_Nd < 0) signature, which possibly generated around 220–200 Ma by partial melting of an upper mantle. We further conclude that they are fragments of refractory material from the lower crust caught up as xenoblocks by granitic magmas, the latter having been generated by partial melting of granulitic lower crustal material around 100 Ma.     

Rare earth abundances in chondritic phosphates and their implications for early stage chronologies

The abundances of nine rare earth elements (REE) in phosphate separates from three ordinary chondrites, Saint Séverin (LL6), Bruderheim (L6) and Richardton (H5), were measured by instrumental neutron activation analysis. All REE except europium are enriched in the phosphate minerals (merrillite and chlorapatite) by factor of 200–300 relative to the chondritic average, whereas Eu is enriched by a factor of 40–50. Electron microprobe analysis showed no significant differences in phosphate mineral composition among the three chondrites studied, though the relative proportions of two minerals varied.According to our data, REE are enriched by almost the same factor in merrillite and chlorapatite in the Bruderheim and, with less certainty, in the other two chondrites. This behavior of REE contrast with that of the actinoid elements, Th, U and Pu, which are also enriched in phosphate but are fractionated between merrillite and chlorapatite. Since Pu and REE show different fractionation behavior in chondritic phosphates, it may be difficult to use REE as stand-ins for Pu in²⁴⁴Pu chronology.     

Nb/Ta,Zr/Hf and REE in the depleted mantle: implications for the differentiation history of the crust–mantle system

High-precision Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf, Sm, Nd and Lu concentration data of depleted mantle rocks from the Balmuccia peridotite complex (Ivrea Zone, Italian Alps) were determined by isotope dilution using multiple collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICPMS) and thermal ionisation mass spectrometry (TIMS). The Zr/Hf ratios of all investigated samples from the Balmuccia peridotite complex are significantly lower than the chondritic value of 34.2, and the most depleted samples have Zr/Hf ratios as low as 10. Correlated Zr/Hf ratios and Zr abundances of the lherzolites preserve the trend of a mantle residue that has been depleted by fractional melting. This trend confirms experimental studies that predict Hf to behave more compatibly than Zr during mantle melting. Experimentally determined partition coefficients imply that the major Zr and Hf depletion most likely occurred in the spinel stability field, with (D_Zr/D_Hf)^cpx≈0.5, and not in the garnet stability field, where (D_Zr/D_Hf)^grt is probably close to one. However, minor amounts of melting must have also occurred in a garnet facies mantle, as indicated by low Sm/Lu ratios in the Balmuccia peridotites. The Nb/Ta ratios of most lherzolites are subchondritic and vary only from 7 to 10, with the exception of three samples that have higher Nb/Ta ratios (18–24). The overall low Nb/Ta ratios of most depleted mantle rocks confirm a higher compatibility of Ta in the mantle. The uniform Nb/Ta ratios in most samples imply that even in ‘depleted’ mantle domains the budget of the highly incompatible Nb and Ta is controlled by enrichment processes. Such a model is supported by the positive correlation of Zr/Nb with the Zr concentration. However, the overall enrichment was weak and did barely affect the moderately incompatible elements Zr and Hf. The new constraints from the partitioning behaviour of Zr–Hf and Nb–Ta provide important insights into processes that formed the Earth’s major silicate reservoirs. The correlation of Zr/Hf and Sm/Nd in depleted MORB can be assigned to previous melting events in the MORB source. However, such trends were unlikely produced during continental crust formation processes, where Sm/Nd and Zr/Hf are decoupled. The different fractionation behaviour of Zr/Hf and Sm/Nd in the depleted mantle (correlated) and the crust (decoupled) indicates that crustal growth by a simple partial melting process in the mantle has little effect on the mass budget of LREE and HFSE between crust and mantle. A more complex source composition, similar to that of modern subduction rocks, is needed to fractionate the LREE, but not Zr/Hf and the HREE.     

Mariana Trough basalts (MTB): trace element and SrNd isotopic evidence for mixing between MORB-like and Arc-like melts

Mariana Trough basalt (MTB) glasses from zones of of active seafloor volcanism have incompatible trace element compositions which are intermediate between normal MORB and basaltic rocks from the active northern Mariana Island Arc (MIAB). The chemical variation is observed in trace elemental abundances and ratios such as LIL/LIL and LIL/HFS. MTB glasses with high LIL/HFS and Ba/Sm ratios, and low K/Rb, K/Ba, and Sm/Nd ratios have more enriched Sr and Nd isotopic compositions.Comparison of the SrNd isotopic compositions of MTB and MIAB suggests that the source region within the mantle wedge is heterogeneous. The diverse trace element and isotopic compositions of MTB glasses both within and between dredge sites near 18°N imply small-scale source heterogeneity. Correlation between Sm/Nd and¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd of the MTB glasses is interpreted as due to recent binary mixing, rather than closed system evolution of a common homogeneous source. Mixing of melts at or near the source region between a mantle component with long-term LREE and LIL element depletion (MORB-like) and a relatively enriched component with lower integrated¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd (Arc-like) is suggested by trends of the MTB data on ratio-ratio, ratio-element and element-element plots.